The evidence for and against the safety of GMOs in the food supply is confusing, and can be difficult for the layperson to understand. Determining whether eating genetically modified organisms increases the risks for cancer and other diseases can be a challenge.

It’s also hard for individuals to trust study results, as many are conducted by Monsanto, the maker of most genetically modified organisms, and others that aren't conducted in what researchers consider an acceptable scientific way.

“Biotech companies like Monsanto told us that Agent Orange, PCBs, and DDT were safe,” said the Institute for Responsible Technology, which is opposed to GMOs. “They are now using the same type of superficial, rigged research to try and convince us that GMOs are safe. Independent scientists, however, have caught the spin-masters red-handed, demonstrating without doubt how industry-funded research is designed to avoid finding problems, and how adverse findings are distorted or denied.”

Special: GMO Foods: Are We Unknowingly Poisoning Our Families?

Some studies have become well-known and referenced in the GMO community. For instance, results of a French rat study led by scientist Gilles-Eric Seralini Results appeared to show that products containing the herbicide Roundup, or glylphosate, caused tumors to grow. The study was retracted after it was published in a journal, but was then republished in an open journal.

According to the Genetic Literacy Project, scientists criticized the way in which the study was conducted. But while many spoke up about the problems with the study, a few stood up to say that it offered a good indication of where more research should be focused. /

“This was a publication that gave some interesting results, but that needed to be replicated with larger numbers of rats in the experiment and, perhaps, a more statistically robust analysis. The paper was, in my mind, inconclusive, but pointed a direction in which future research could go,” said Dr. Peter Dearden of the University of Otago in New Zealand.

The layperson is left wondering whether the Seralini rat study results might indicate tumor growth and cancerous conditions from Roundup residue, typically tied to GMOs, and with no clear direction.

Special: Are We Unknowingly Poisoning Our Families With GMO Foods?

According to the MD Anderson Cancer Center, the question of whether GMOs cause cancer is not clear. “Many people believe that altering the DNA of a plant or animal has a significant effect on a person’s chances of developing cancer,” the center’s website said. “But the current research on the health risks of GMOs is inconclusive. In other words, researchers cannot confirm whether or not GMOs increase cancer risks.”

When discussing cancer risk and GMOs, the focus tends to fall on whether Roundup, or its primary ingredient of glyphosate, causes cancer. Independent Science News reported that GM crops in one study contained higher levels of glyphosate than non-GM crops or organic crops.

In March 2015, the International Agency for Research on Cancer put glyphosate on a list of organophosphate pesticides that are “probably carcinogenic to humans.”


Special: GMO Foods: Are We Unknowingly Poisoning Our Families?

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